PLEASANTON, Calif., Aug. 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ZELTIQ Aesthetics, Inc. (ZLTQ) a medical technology company focused on developing and commercializing products utilizing its proprietary controlled-cooling technology platform, today announced that it has appointed Mark J. Foley as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Foley previously served as Interim President and CEO since April 2012 and as a member of the Board of Directors since 2009.

Bryan Roberts, Ph.D., Chairman of ZELTIQ's Nominating and Governance Committee and a Partner at Venrock, commented, "We are very pleased that Mark will be serving as President and CEO on a permanent basis. With 25 years of experience in the medical device industry, and an in-depth understanding of ZELTIQ's business, Mark was the ideal candidate for the CEO role. Under Mark's leadership as interim CEO, ZELTIQ delivered a very strong Q2 performance and made significant progress in strengthening and streamlining the organization. We have great confidence that he will be successful in executing ZELTIQ's growth strategy and building on our position as the market leader in non-surgical fat reduction."

Prior to Mr. Foley's appointment as Interim President and CEO, he served on the Company's Board of Directors since 2009 and held the position of Executive Chairman until May 2010. Mr. Foley has 25 years of medical device operating, investment, board, and CEO experience. Mr. Foley currently serves as a Managing Director for RWI Ventures, Executive Chairman for Onpharma, Senior Advisor to TauTona Group, and as a Director for Sonitus Medical and Voyage Medical. Mr. Foley's prior experience includes a variety of senior operating roles with large cap companies and venture-backed start-up's such as US Surgical Corporation, Guidant, DVI (acquired by Eli Lilly), Perclose (acquired by Abbott) and Ventrica (acquired by Medtronic) where he was the founder and CEO. Mr. Foley received his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame.

Mark Foley, newly appointed President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "I am very excited to assume the full-time, CEO role at ZELTIQ and I sincerely appreciate the Board's confidence in my leadership abilities. Having been involved with the Company since 2009, I am looking forward to leveraging my familiarity with the technology, organization and customers to ensure that we continue to successfully execute on our plan. While CoolSculpting(R) continues to enjoy the market leadership position in non-invasive fat reduction, due to its proven safety and efficacy in over 400,000 procedures to date, I believe that we are still in the early stages of this new and exciting high-growth market and I am committed to making sure that we maintain our leadership position."

About ZELTIQ

ZELTIQ(R) Aesthetics is a medical technology company focused on developing and commercializing products utilizing its proprietary controlled-cooling technology platform. The Company's first commercial product, the CoolSculpting(R) System, is designed to selectively reduce stubborn fat bulges that may not respond to diet or exercise. CoolSculpting is based on the scientific principle that fat cells are more sensitive to cold than the overlying skin and surrounding tissues. CoolSculpting utilizes patented technology of precisely controlled cooling to reduce the temperature of fat cells in the treated area, which is intended to cause fat cell elimination through a natural biological process known as apoptosis, without causing scar tissue or damage to the skin, nerves, or surrounding tissues. ZELTIQ developed CoolSculpting to safely, noticeably, and measurably reduce the fat layer within a treated fat bulge without requiring the patient to diet or exercise.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to the company's current and future business operations and financial performance and condition. Any statements contained in this press release that are not of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are, in some cases, beyond our control and that could materially affect the company's actual business operations and financial performance and condition. Factors that could materially affect our business operations and financial performance and condition include, but are not limited to, less than anticipated growth in the number of physicians electing to purchase CoolSculpting Systems, insufficient patient demand for CoolSculpting procedures, product or procedure announcements by competitors, our failure to correctly estimate and control our future expenditures, and the failure of our sales and marketing plans to increase sales as well as those other risks and uncertainties set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011, filed with the SEC on March 15, 2012. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. We expressly disclaim any obligation to update information contained in these forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.